85 Ian Paisley

On this episode of the Irish History Show we were joined by journalist and author Ed Moloney to discuss the life of Ian Paisley. Reverend Ian Paisley was the founder of the Free Presbyterian Church and the leader of the Democratic Unionist Party from 1971 to 2008. In 2007 he became the First Minister of Northern Ireland. We discussed Paisley’s rise to prominence in Northern Ireland during the 1960s; the political and religious traditions he came from; his American influences; his opposition to ecumenism, liberalism and the Civil Rights Movement; his relationship with Loyalist paramilitaries; his longevity and popularity in Northern Irish politics; power sharing with Sinn Féin, and the end of his leadership of both the DUP and the Free Presbyterian Church. Ed Moloney is the former Northern Editor of both the Irish Times and the Sunday Tribune. He has published work in a variety of newspapers and magazines in Ireland, the UK, and the United States, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New York Daily News, The New York Post, The Economist, The Independent, The Guardian and The New Statesman. Moloney is the author of three books dealing with aspects of the Irish Troubles, A Secret History of the IRA (2007), Paisley: From Demagogue to Democrat? (2008) and Voices from the Grave: Two Men’s War in Ireland (2010). He has also helped to produce documentaries for the BBC, Channel Four, London Weekend Television and a recent RTÉ documentary, Voices From the Grave, which was based on his book and was shortlisted for best documentary prize by the Irish Film and Television Academy. Ed Moloney’s website is available here.